$17.8 million worth of cocaine found in banana boxes donated to a prison

Another story in the cocaine-banana saga

Kate Hutchison

25 September 2018

45 boxes of donated bananas going to a prison in Texas were found to conceal nearly $18 million worth of cocaine.

According to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, prison sergeants discovered the load after collecting the donation from the Ports of America in Freeport.

The pair found packs of the substance hidden beneath bundles of bananas. Following an alert, U.S. Custom Officials uncovered 540 packages of cocaine.

Authorities have not revealed the origin or intended recipient of the containers, but investigations are now underway.

This is one of many cases involving cocaine smuggling via banana shipping containers. The Associated Press reported that in April, 9 tonnes of cocaine inside banana shipping containers were found by Spanish police.